PreeRan FF: That Thing Called Love Ch 5 updated Pg 4 - Page 2

Preetha continues with her rant saying "And so Mr. Karan Luthra, it so happened that I managed to help Prithvi sort out his differences with his ex, and that evening, he had come home to thank me. And yes, he is finally getting married, not to me of course, but to the one who has his heart. He was so happy he hugged me. It was just a friendly hug. Nothing more! Ab yeh mat bolna ki tumhe usse koi farak nahin padta, kyunki abhi jo tum yeh silly sa smile de rahe ho na, woh saaf saaf bata raha hai ki tum ussi baat ko lekar gussa the! Aur mujhe misunderstandings harbor karne ka koi shauk nahin hai! Ab chalein? Kaafi der ho gayi hai!"

Karan: "Oh! So it was just a friendly hug huh? Pakka na? Waise kya zaroorat thi uss se itna chipakne ki! Woh bina hug kiye bhi toh thank you bol sakta tha na? Aur tum, tumne mujhe pehle kyun nahin bataya ki tum prithvi ke saath milke yeh khichdi paka rahi thi! Faltu main mera mood kharab kardiya. Maine tumhare liye kitne arrangements kiye the, pata hai?"

Preeta: Huh? Mere liye? Kya matlab?

As they were walking along the pavement towards the car, Preeta couldn't help fuming at the audacity of this guy who she called her friend. One apology couldn't cost him that much, after all those sleepless nights he had given her. And what did he mean when he said he had made arrangements for her. It was so unlike Karan to not be ready with a comeback, fearing she would assume he was interested in her. Did that mean something she was so scared to admit to herself all these days, in fear of expecting too much from life.  She cleared her throat and continued, "Waise toh normal log iss point par sorry bolte hain par tum toh 'The Karan Luthra' ho na! Toh tum thodi na sorry bologe!"

Karan couldn't take it anymore. Yes, he owed her an apology and he had already decided how to wanted to make it up to her. But Preeta's constant bickering wasn't helping him either. He had to calm her down and he knew the best way to do that. With one quick motion, he had her pinned against the car door, placing his hand on her mouth to quieten her, taking her by surprise. As he did so, he couldn't help but notice those beautiful vulnerable eyes, the question mark on her face, that unruly strand of hair that wouldn't stay in its place making her look all the more beautiful. As if it was a reflex, he removed his hand from her mouth, and tucked that strand of hair behind her ear, all the while looking deep into her brown eyes, feeling all that he had never felt all his life- a gush of admiration for this beautiful lady standing in front of him, someone he had vowed to hate all his life, but slowly, she had carved her place in his heart and now, even though she was unaware of it, he was besotted to her. He had fallen for her, for the spark that only he could ignite in her, fallen for the fierceness with which she fought for what was right, fallen for the way she could give without expecting anything in return, fallen for the unconditional love she had for the people who mattered to her, and all he knew was that he desperately wanted to be amongst those she loved with all her heart. It was the moment Karan Luthra had fallen in love,  fallen hard for the girl who had so mysteriously landed in his car that night.

Preeta seemed to have lost herself in the intensity of his eyes, his eyes that were boring into her and looking right into her soul. She couldn't help but wonder if he also felt the same way about her. She had initially thought of him as this rude, arrogant star who thought too much of himself. But as she got to know him better, she realized he was more layered than she had imagined him to be. He could be immature and too full of himself one moment, sorted and composed the very next moment. He knew what he wanted from life. His passion drove him to achieve whatever he laid his eyes on. He adored his family and could do anything to make sure they stayed happy and safe. As much as she had liked to believe he was a womanizer, there had been enough instances to prove that he was anything but that. He respected women and she had seen that at several instances. He was the usual amicable guy, who had won the hearts of each of her family members since day one. He had become a regular visitor at the Arora household, be it on the pretext of eating yummy food or to meet shrishti or to pull her leg. Over time, she had come to enjoy his company even if she never admitted it to herself before this moment. And here, at this very moment, when she felt his fingers ever-so-lightly tracing her face, she felt different, she felt happy, she felt comfortable, she felt secure. All those moments she had spent pining for him to talk to her, to understand her, scolding him in her head and vowing to teach him a lesson when he met her- all those moments had vanished into thin air, as she now stood in front of this guy, looking deep into his eyes that reflected what she felt for him. At that very moment, Preeta realized how it felt to be in love. She had never imagined herself going through this emotion, despite her little sister making up cute little stories about them at the drop of a hat. But standing right here, she wanted all those stories to turn true. 

The honking of a car brought them out of their trance and Karan, true to himself, pulled Preeta towards himself and said, "Miss Mental, tum chup rahogi, tabhi toh main kuch bolunga na? Waise bhi, Karan Luthra jo bhi karta hai, style mein karta hai. Aur iss baar galti ki hai, toh maafi bhi achhe se hi maangni padegi na. Toh chalein? Ab yeh mat puchhna ki kahan jaa rahe hain! Surprise hai!"

They drove in silence, comfortable silence, still trying to get used to this new feeling. Finally they arrived to what seemed like a private beach. Karan opened the car door, taking extra care to shut the door once Preeta stepped down, checking to see if her kurta wasn't stuck. He smiled goofily as he realized Preeta had noticed this gesture and was smiling indulgently at him. He led her to the beach, telling her this was one of his go-to places in a crowded city like Mumbai. He had exclusive access to this place, which meant he could find his peace here without the media following him here. And he couldn't have found a better place to talk to her in peace, without being scared of the media disturbing them. The beach was beautiful, with the sound of the waves crashing at the shore. The waters glistened under the moonlight. And right at the centre was a cabana, draped in white curtains, fairy lights lighting up the curtains, the table decorated with fragrant candles and flowers. Preeta was wondering what this was all about when to her surprise, Karan led her further away near the shore. He sat down on the beach, holding Preeta's hand in his, and continued:

"Preeta, I know you're mad at me. And for once, it's okay. I deserved it. I was stupid and hasty. But you know how impulsive I am, right? I don't know what happened to me that time, I just didn't like the fact that anyone other than me could hug you. I didn't like the fact that Prithvi was so perfect. I didn't like the fact that someone could give me a tough competition. I was nursing my bruised ego, an ego bigger than anything else. I didn't like the fact that you were going to say yes to that proposal and I would lose you as a friend. No wait, not just a friend. We have something special between us Preeta. I don't know if you have ever felt that but I have and I'll do all it takes to show you that, if you give me a chance. That moment when I saw you in his arms, it felt like someone had stabbed me in the heart with a thousand daggers. I've never known so much pain. It was more disappointing than getting out of an important cricket match right before I hit a century and you know how much that would matter to me. It was the fear of losing you and I felt helpless. I wasn't just mad at you, I was avoiding you coz I couldn't act like I was okay looking at you everyday knowing we'll never be what we could have been, had we given ourselves some more time to get to know each other.  Back then when I asked you to reject Prithvi, I wasn't sure why I wanted you to do that. But now I know. I know it's coz I wanted you all to myself, coz I know you're so annoying only I can tolerate your antics. With others, you're so sugary sweet you'll end up killing them with diabetes. And imagine how boring your life would be with someone like Prithvi! All you would do is smile and your romance could go like 'Prithvi ji' 'Preeta ji'! Yaar sochke hi darr lagta hai! Socho mere saath tumhari life kitni interesting hogi! Tum Kareli, main Karela, hum toh apne life mein kadvahat ko bhi khushi khushi manage kar lenge! Aur socho, you'll always have your hands full trying to keep my female fans at bay. Shayad issi bahaane karate hi seekh jaaogi. We'll never have a single dull moment in our lives coz hum toh jhagda kiye bina saans bhi nahin le sakte! I missed you Kareli! I missed fighting with you. I missed seeing those forever changing exasperated expressions on your face when I annoy you! And before you decide to slap me for counting all the negatives, trust me these are what made me fall for you Preeta! I never imagined I would say this to anyone, and you're the last person I expected to fall in love with, but here I am, pouring my heart out, leaving myself at your mercy. Now it's time for your surprise!"

As he led her to the table, Preeta could feel her heart racing. Was he going to propose? Wasn't it too soon? How was she to react? She wanted to scream 'I love you too Karan' but was too stunned to get those words out of her mouth. She would definitely pour her heart out. He deserved that after all this. But it had to wait. She needed to compose herself first. 

As they reached the table for two, he pulled a chair for her to sit down, and taking the box kept on the table, he went down on one knee. 

Preeta couldn't believe this was actually happening. Was Karan Luthra asking her out with a ring to seal the deal? Wasn't it too soon for this? When did Karan become so cheesy? He had already surpassed her expectations but this? Preeta braced herself as Karan opened the box, smiling extra wide this time. As soon as he opened the box, Preeta's mouth fell open in an 'O' as she couldn't believe her eyes. So Karan had after all not become the crazy-in-love excessively cheesy lover after all. She should have understood that grin on his face meant something was fishy. Was he again upto some prank? Was this all a joke just like all the previous times? Was he just a good actor who knew how to emote perfectly or was he just being his usual crazy self with his crazy ideas.